Carnegie Hall - Bringing the Arts to Life

Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys

Ralph Stanley’s voice is not of this century. Nor of the last one, for that matter. Its stark emotional urgency is rooted in a darker time, when pain was the common coin of life and the world offered sinful humanity no hope of refuge. In January, 2000, Stanley became the first artist to be inducted into the historic Grand Ole Opry in the new millennium. He holds the Living Legend award from the Library of Congress and was the first recipient of the Traditional American Music award from the National Endowment for the Humanities.

This program is presented with financial assistance by:

Tristan Prettyman

Since emerging on the California club scene just a few short years ago, singer/songwriter and guitarist Tristan Prettyman has been acclaimed as one of today’s most remarkable new artists. With laid-back melodies springing from finger-picked acoustic guitar and plaintive pedal-steel guitar, she explores her love of country-blues and folk from the ’60s and ’70s, artists like The Band, Joni Mitchell, and Bob Dylan. Rolling Stone calls Prettyman “one of the more promising young pop folkies.”

George Winston

While best known for his classic seasonal solo piano recordings -- Autumn, Winter Into Spring, December and Summer – George Winston has achieved both popular and critical success arranging and performing a diverse range of music that inspires him. Drawing on R&B, jazz, blues, rock and folk for his compositions, Winston has invented a sparse, yet dynamic style he calls folk piano.

The Phenomenal Ruthie Foster

Ruthie Foster’s songs contain elements of blues, gospel, country and folk that give color and texture to her vocal work and fill those who hear her music with great joy. Her strong, vibrant voice and her easy, friendly manner instantly charm audiences of all ages.

Kandinsky Trio

The Kandinsky Trio was founded in 1987 and has quickly established itself as one of America's foremost chamber ensembles. The Kandinsky Trio has appeared in recital, on radio and television broadcasts, and has received an array of honors and awards. One of the Kandinsky's missions is "to keep alive the performance of some of the greatest music ever written in a time when shrinking audiences and invasive popular culture threaten its existence."

Terrance Simien & The Zydeco Experience

For more than 2 decades Terrance Simien, 8th generation Louisiana Creole, has been shattering the myths about what his indigenous Creole Zydeco music is and is not. Leading his Zydeco Experience Band, Simien has become a highly respected, internationally recognized touring and recording artist and Cultural Ambassador for his state. He has presented thousands of performances, toured millions of miles to over 40 countries and reached at least a million people during his eventful 25 year career.

Solas

Solas is the most talented and exciting Irish traditional band in America. Combining virtuosity and élan, the Irish-American quintet takes the raw material of traditional folk songs and dances and transformed them into art pieces that are jazzy and sophisticated while ultimately retaining the accessibility inherent in their origins.

West Virginia Symphony

Now in its 68th season, the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra presents over 30 concerts annually to audiences throughout the Mountain State. Under the leadership of Artistic Director & Conductor Grant Cooper, the WVSO has risen to a new level of excellence, and together they have been hailed for exciting, dramatic concerts. In addition to its Charleston series of six symphonic and four pops concerts, the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra tours the state each year and has recently presented concerts in Beckley, Elkins, Fairmont, Martinsburg, Lewisburg, Hurricane, Monroe County, Parkersburg, and other West Virginia communities.

Simone

She is her own woman - a singer, songwriter and performer whose ability to transcend genres echoes the tradition of her mother, musical icon and pioneer Nina Simone. Blessed with a rich vocal range, an innate skill for lyrical interpretation and a soul-deep understanding of music as a means of healing, empowerment and celebration, Simone is very much her mother’s daughter. She is most assuredly a multi-talented artist in her own right.

This program is presented with financial assistance by:

The Infamous Stringdusters

The Infamous Stringdusters represent the cream of the crop of young bluegrass musicians. The band boasts a combined resume that includes collaborations with artists like Dolly Parton, Leftover Salmon, Earl Scruggs, Bering Strait, Ronnie Bowman and Levon Helm. The six musicians’ resumes cut a swath across the bluegrass mainstream and beyond.

Pianafiddle

Improvising on the spot, PIANAFIDDLE draws from genres as diverse as bluegrass, classical, ragtime, klezmer, and jazz. Beginning with a familiar tune, concert violinist and fiddle player Adam DeGraff and ragtime pianist Lynn Wright blur stylistic lines and meld genres, continually engrossing their audiences with traditionally-grounded, yet accessible and spontaneous new musical creations.

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Mainstage Series